Field of the Invention
The invention relates to fibre-optic enclosures in general, and to a method of unlocking a door of such an enclosure.
Background
Fibre-optic networks are progressively used for transmitting data. Telecommunication companies use fibre-optic networks to transmit optical voice and data signals via optical fibres between a central network unit, e.g. a central office, and telecommunication customers, sometimes called subscribers. Larger fibre-optic networks comprise so-called splitters, which split optical signals in one incoming fibre into optical signals propagating in a plurality of outgoing fibres. In order to protect splitters against the environment, vandalism or other unauthorized access, splitters are often accommodated in fibre-optic enclosures. Such enclosures can be, for example, fibre-optic splice cabinets, splitter cabinets, street cabinets, or manholes, but also splice closures for only one or a few splitters. Such enclosures are normally locked to prevent unauthorized access, but when service or maintenance is to be performed on the splitters or the fibres optically connected to them, the enclosures must be unlocked in order to allow a person physical access to the interior of the enclosures. Physical access to the interior of an enclosure should only be allowed to authorized persons. Before a person, e.g. a service technician, can open the enclosure, he must be authenticated, so that only authorized persons can open the enclosure. For that purpose, many enclosures are equipped with a mechanical lock, and authorized service persons have a corresponding mechanical key that can unlock the lock and thereby allows opening the enclosure.
More sophisticated solutions are known, though. In the European Patent EP 2220625 B1, for example, an access point of a telecommunication network is described. The access point may be, e.g., a base station, an amplifier or a receiver station. Before opening the access point, a service technician communicates with a central network server using a notification device, e.g. a mobile phone. The central network server can authenticate the technician via a SIM card of his notification device. The international patent publication WO2007/131006 A2 describes a remote monitoring system comprising an electronic module inside a telecommunication enclosure. In certain embodiments, the electronic module can communicate with a remote communication device, e.g. a transponder or a handheld device, and receive authorization information from it. An electronic lock may use access information, sent by a transponder, to allow unlocking of the lock. Also, the access information may be sent to a central security system to check if accesses were authorized.
In traditional, copper-based telecommunication networks, electrical energy is available virtually everywhere, because it is needed to operate many components of the network. Enclosures in copper-based networks can therefore use the abundant electrical energy to perform authentication when a service technician requires access to the enclosure. In fibre-optic enclosures, however, electrical energy is normally not required to operate equipment inside an enclosure. Most equipment, like fibre-optic splitters, splices, connectors and fibres, for example, are passive elements, i.e. they do not require electrical energy to operate. For this reason, many fibre-optic enclosures are “passive” enclosures, i.e. they are not permanently provided with electrical energy by an external energy source. Passive enclosures are normally not equipped with an internal energy source, e.g. a battery, either, because maintenance and replacement of the battery requires service resources and is therefore costly. For these reasons, in passive fibre-optic enclosures no electrical energy is available for establishing a two-way communication for performing an authentication process, and they cannot store authentication information for a longer time. It is, however, desirable to authenticate a person before denying or allowing him access to the interior of a passive enclosure. The present disclosure seeks to address this problem.